“A blasted moment.” Dread filled Colyne. Alesia was anxious to reach her homeland, but was she desperate enough to follow him and put her life at risk?
Worry had him striding down the dock. He forced his way through the sea of sailors toward where the English duke’s knights congregated around a cloaked figure.
The ranks of the knights broke.
One of the men hauled their prisoner hard against his chest.
His captive flailed her arms in an attempt to break free. The hood fell back.
Alesia’s pale, terrified face came into view.
Chapter 15
Terrified, Marie twisted in an attempt to escape her captor. She must reach the ship!
The knight tightened his grip. “Be still!”
She dug her nails into the man’s face. Angry trails of blood streaked down his cheek.
“Curse you!” He wrenched her hand behind her back.
Pain shot up her arm. Marie sucked in air to scream and he clapped his hand over her mouth.
The duke’s men moved closer, their bodies shielding her from the view of the men on the dock.
She strained to see past the knights to where she’d caught sight of Colyne moments before. Naught. Her heart sank. He’d boarded the ship.
“Take her down the alley,” a burly knight ordered the man holding her.
She fought against her captor, but he hauled her into the narrow street. Mortared stone blocked her view of the pier. Non!She must reach Colyne!Marie bit her captor’s hand.
He swore and released her.
“Help!”
The blustering workers, the screeching of seagulls, and the clatter of goods being hauled across wood drowned out her scream.
“No one is going to help you,” the man snarled as he clamped his hand over her mouth once more.
Again, Marie tried to sink her teeth into his flesh.
With a snarl, he wrapped his fingers around her throat, squeezed. “You will be regretting that, King Philip’s bastard daughter or not!”
She gasped. A veil of gray coated her vision.Colyne, help me!Groggy from lack of air, she slumped against the man. He eased his grip and she began to cough.
“Try to escape again and next time I will not be so gentle.” He tugged a piece of cloth from his garb, secured the gag over her mouth. Another knight stepped forward and wrapped a blanket around her, casting her into blackness.
The bitter cloth dug into her mouth, and Marie struggled to work the gag free. She couldn’t untie it.
By the grace of Mary, what was she going to do? Colyne didn’t know that she had followed him to the docks. Bishop Wishart believed her asleep and wouldn’t notice her disappearance for hours. After reading her brief explanation as to why she’d left and believing her safe with Colyne, even if the bishop sent a runner to ensure she’d reached the ship, he’d not find her now.
“Go,” a man’s deep voice ordered. Leather boots slapped against the wet stone as the knight holding her walked.
“Colyne!” she called against the twisted cloth. Marie listened for any sign of possible rescue. Except for the sounds of men in the distance and the grumbles of the knights trudging by her side, work on the docks continued without interruption.
Refusing to give up, she wriggled her hands in the hope of loosening her bonds. After several fruitless attempts, the skin on her wrists burning, she stilled.
Why hadn’t she remained hidden in the alley a few seconds longer? With the ship’s departure imminent, Colyne would have been forced to take her with him.
